POS peripherals controlling device, mobile host device, and control method thereof

ABSTRACT

Provided is a POS peripherals controlling device including: a wireless communication unit; an interface part including at least one interface unit; and a controller determining whether data received from a mobile POS host device through the wireless communication unit includes control data for controlling at least one POS peripheral connected through the interface part, when the received data includes control data, checking a target POS peripheral where the control data is to be delivered among the at least one peripheral, and transmitting control data included in the received data to the checked POS peripheral through a first interface unit connected to the checked target peripheral among the at least one interface unit, wherein the control data is generated by the mobile POS host device and is generated in a format corresponding to the target peripheral that is to receive the control data.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/118,092, which is the national stage of International PatentApplication No. PCT/KR2014/011700, filed on Dec. 2, 2014, which claimspriority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2014-0015203, filed Feb.11, 2014. The entire contents of which are incorporated herein byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a Point-Of-Sales (POS) peripheralscontrolling device for controlling a POS peripheral, a mobile hostdevice, and a control method thereof.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, a POS system refers to a POS management system containing ateller registration function and a computer function.

When such a POS system is used, it is possible to grasp the flow ofsales of goods by each unit item, and furthermore, it is possible tograsp in detail the sales trends and time slots of new and promotionalgoods, sales sluggish goods, and the sales trends of similar goods orcompeting goods. Therefore, it is possible to effectively establishmarketing strategies such as relationships between selling prices andsales volumes, main attack targets, and advertisement plans.

Such a POS system may be configured typically including a server forsupporting a POS and a POS terminal for performing various POS functionin connection with the server. In general, a POS function may includefunctions for collecting/processing a variety of information andmaterials necessary for product management, payment processing, salesamount calculation processing, and store or shop management. Moreover,various POS peripherals (for example, barcode readers, receipt printers,card payment signature pads, cash drawers, and so on) may be connectedto a POS terminal. At this point, the POS terminal may have a functionfor controlling the POS peripherals.

In relation to such a typical POS system, POS terminals may be in PCforms or POS peripherals may be integrally combined with a POS terminalin most cases. Although studies on using electronic devices such astablet PCs or smartphones having portability and computing capabilitysimilar to that of an existing PC as POS terminals are in progressrecently, there are interface issues between electronic devices such astablet PCs or smartphones and POS peripherals. Thus, it is difficult toactually use electronic devices such as tablet PCs or smartphones as POSterminals.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

The present disclosure provides a POS peripherals controlling device forcontrolling POS peripherals, and more particularly, to a POS peripheralscontrolling device for easily using electronic devices such as tabletPCs or smartphones as a POS terminal (for example, a host device).

The present disclosure also provides a POS peripheral controlling methodfor controlling POS peripherals.

The present disclosure also provides a mobile host device forcontrolling POS peripherals.

The present disclosure also provides a mobile host controlling methodfor easily controlling POS peripherals.

Technical Solution

According to one aspect of the present invention, a POS peripheralscontrolling device includes: a wireless communication unit; an interfacepart including at least one interface unit; and a controller determiningwhether data received from a mobile POS host device through the wirelesscommunication unit includes control data for controlling at least onePOS peripheral connected through the interface part, when the receiveddata includes control data, checking a target POS peripheral where thecontrol data is to be delivered among the at least one peripheral, andtransmitting control data included in the received data to the checkedPOS peripheral through a first interface unit connected to the checkedtarget peripheral among the at least one interface unit, wherein thecontrol data is generated by the mobile POS host device and is generatedin a format corresponding to the target peripheral that is to receivethe control data.

At this point, the wireless communication unit may communicate datathrough at least one wireless communication method of Wifi, Bluetooth,ZigBee, WiGig, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), infrared DataAssociation (IrDA), Ultra Wideband (UWB), and WiHD.

The interface part may include at least one of a USB port, a serialport, and a parallel port.

The interface part may communicate data through at least one wirelesscommunication method of Wifi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, WiGig, Radio FrequencyIdentification (RFID), infrared Data Association (IrDA), Ultra Wideband(UWB), and WiHD.

At this point, the data may includes a first part representing whetherthe data includes the control data, a second part representingidentification information of the target POS peripheral where thecontrol data is to be transmitted, and a third part including thecontrol data. At this point, the third part may include size informationrepresenting a size of the control data and the control data.

The controller may determine whether the received data includes thecontrol data on the basis of a first part included in the data andrepresenting whether the data includes the control data.

The controller may check the target POS peripheral on the basis of asecond part included in the data and representing identificationinformation of the target POS peripheral.

The controller may extract the control data to be transmitted to thetarget POS peripheral from the received data on the basis of a thirdpart included in the data and including size information representing asize of the control data and the control data.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a POS peripheralscontrolling device includes: a wireless communication unit; an interfacepart including at least one interface unit; and a controller forreceiving data from a first POS peripheral through the interface part,obtaining identification information of the first POS peripheral,generating data for host transmission including the identificationinformation and the received data, and transmitting the generated datafor host transmission to a mobile POS host device through the wirelesscommunication unit, wherein the data for host transmission furtherincludes transmission information representing that data received by themobile POS host device is transmitted from a POS peripheral.

The controller may check a first interface unit connected to the firstPOS peripheral among the at least one interface unit and obtainidentification information of the first POS peripheral on the basis ofthe checked first interface unit.

The POS peripherals controlling device may further include a memory unitfor matching and storing the at least one interface unit andidentification information of at least one POS peripheral connected toeach of the at least one interface unit, wherein the controller mayobtain identification information of the first POS peripheral bychecking the memory unit.

At this point, when one of the at least one POS peripheral is connectedto one of the at least one interface unit, the controller may match andstore identification information of the connected POS peripheral andinformation on the connected interface unit in the memory.

The controller may receive identification information of the first POSperipheral together with the data from the first POS peripheral.

According to another aspect of the present invention, provided is acontrol method of a mobile host device that is wirelessly connected to aPOS peripherals controlling device that is connected to at least one POSperipheral. The method includes: receiving a control signal forcontrolling a first POS peripheral among the at least one POS peripheralfrom an application program or Operating System (OS); generating controldata having a format corresponding to the first POS peripheral on thebasis of the control signal through a first unit corresponding to thefirst POS peripheral among at least one control unit; obtainingidentification information of the first POS peripheral; generating datafor controller transmission including the generated control data, theobtained identification information, and information representing datafor controller transmission; and transmitting the generated data forcontroller transmission to the POS peripherals controlling device.

At this point, the data for controller transmission may further includesize information representing a size of the control data.

The method may further include receiving identification information ofthe at least one POS peripheral from the POS peripherals controllingdevice.

According to another aspect of the present invention, provided is acontrol method of a mobile host device that is wirelessly connected to aPOS peripherals controlling device that is connected to at least one POSperipheral. The method includes: receiving data from the POS peripheralscontrolling device; determining whether the received data includesperipheral data transmitted from the at least one POS peripheral; whenthe received data includes the peripheral data, checking a source POSperipheral that transmits the peripheral data; and processing theperipheral data through a first unit corresponding to the checked sourcePOS peripheral among at least one control unit.

The method may further include transmitting a processing result of theperipheral data to an application program or Operating System (OS).

At this point, the data may include a first part representing whetherthe data includes the peripheral data, a second part representingidentification information of the source POS peripheral, and a thirdpart including the peripheral data.

Advantageous Effects

According to the present invention, the following effects occur.

First, as a host device is indirectly connected to POS peripheralsthrough a POS peripherals controlling device without being directlyconnected to all POS peripherals, the host device may control aplurality of POS peripherals even if being connected to only the POSperipherals controlling device 100, so that it is possible to control aplurality of POS peripherals.

Second, as a host device is connected to the POS peripherals controllingdevice to control POS peripherals, without a specific hardware designchange or a special hardware component addition for an existingsmartphone and/or a tablet PC, it is possible to operate as a hostdevice for controlling POS peripherals.

Third, without a specific hardware design change or a software designchange for existing POS peripherals and/or a special hardware componentor software component addition for existing POS peripherals, it ispossible to communicate a POS peripherals controlling device through amethod identical to a method of communicating with an existing hostdevice, and as a POS peripherals controlling device according to anembodiment of the present invention properly serves as an intermediaterole between a POS peripheral and a host device, even when an existingsmartphone and/or a tablet PC is used as a host device, it is possibleto communicate with various kinds of POS peripherals.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating an operating environment according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a POS peripherals controlling deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a host device connected to a POSperipherals controlling device according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 4 to 6 are views illustrating a series of procedures fromtransmitting a command from a host device to a POS peripheral accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 7 to 9 are views illustrating a series of procedures fortransmitting data from POS peripherals to a host device according to anembodiment of the present invention.

BEST MODE

According to one aspect of the present invention, a POS peripheralscontrolling device includes: a wireless communication unit; an interfacepart including at least one interface unit; and a controller determiningwhether data received from a mobile POS host device through the wirelesscommunication unit includes control data for controlling at least onePOS peripheral connected through the interface part, when the receiveddata includes control data, checking a target POS peripheral where thecontrol data is to be delivered among the at least one peripheral, andtransmitting control data included in the received data to the checkedPOS peripheral through a first interface unit connected to the checkedtarget peripheral among the at least one interface unit, wherein thecontrol data is generated by the mobile POS host device and is generatedin a format corresponding to the target peripheral that is to receivethe control data.

At this point, the wireless communication unit communicates data throughat least one wireless communication method of Wifi, Bluetooth, ZigBee,WiGig, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), infrared Data Association(IrDA), Ultra Wideband (UWB), and WiHD.

The interface part includes at least one of a USB port, a serial port,and a parallel port.

The interface part communicates data through at least one wirelesscommunication method of Wifi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, WiGig, Radio FrequencyIdentification (RFID), infrared Data Association (IrDA), Ultra Wideband(UWB), and WiHD.

At this point, the data includes a first part representing whether thedata includes the control data, a second part representingidentification information of the target POS peripheral where thecontrol data is to be transmitted, and a third part including thecontrol data. At this point, the third part includes size informationrepresenting a size of the control data and the control data.

The controller determines whether the received data includes the controldata on the basis of a first part included in the data and representingwhether the data includes the control data.

The controller checks the target POS peripheral on the basis of a secondpart included in the data and representing identification information ofthe target POS peripheral.

The controller extracts the control data to be transmitted to the targetPOS peripheral from the received data on the basis of a third partincluded in the data and including size information representing a sizeof the control data and the control data.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a POS peripheralscontrolling device includes: a wireless communication unit; an interfacepart including at least one interface unit; and a controller forreceiving data from a first POS peripheral through the interface part,obtaining identification information of the first POS peripheral,generating data for host transmission including the identificationinformation and the received data, and transmitting the generated datafor host transmission to a mobile POS host device through the wirelesscommunication unit, wherein the data for host transmission furtherincludes transmission information representing that data received by themobile POS host device is transmitted from a POS peripheral.

The controller checks a first interface unit connected to the first POSperipheral among the at least one interface unit and obtainsidentification information of the first POS peripheral on the basis ofthe checked first interface unit.

The POS peripherals controlling device further includes a memory unitfor matching and storing the at least one interface unit andidentification information of at least one POS peripheral connected toeach of the at least one interface unit, wherein the controller obtainsidentification information of the first POS peripheral by checking thememory unit.

At this point, when one of the at least one POS peripheral is connectedto one of the at least one interface unit, the controller matches andstores identification information of the connected POS peripheral andinformation on the connected interface unit in the memory.

The controller receives identification information of the first POSperipheral together with the data from the first POS peripheral.

According to another aspect of the present invention, provided is acontrol method of a mobile host device that is wirelessly connected to aPOS peripherals controlling device that is connected to at least one POSperipheral. The method includes: receiving a control signal forcontrolling a first POS peripheral among the at least one POS peripheralfrom an application program or Operating System (OS); generating controldata having a format corresponding to the first POS peripheral on thebasis of the control signal through a first unit corresponding to thefirst POS peripheral among at least one control unit; obtainingidentification information of the first POS peripheral; generating datafor controller transmission including the generated control data, theobtained identification information, and information representing datafor controller transmission; and transmitting the generated data forcontroller transmission to the POS peripherals controlling device.

At this point, the data for controller transmission further includessize information representing a size of the control data.

The method further includes receiving identification information of theat least one POS peripheral from the POS peripherals controlling device.

According to another aspect of the present invention, provided is acontrol method of a mobile host device that is wirelessly connected to aPOS peripherals controlling device that is connected to at least one POSperipheral. The method includes: receiving data from the POS peripheralscontrolling device; determining whether the received data includesperipheral data transmitted from the at least one POS peripheral; whenthe received data includes the peripheral data, checking a source POSperipheral that transmits the peripheral data; and processing theperipheral data through a first unit corresponding to the checked sourcePOS peripheral among at least one control unit.

The method further includes transmitting a processing result of theperipheral data to an application program or Operating System (OS).

At this point, the data includes a first part representing whether thedata includes the peripheral data, a second part representingidentification information of the source POS peripheral, and a thirdpart including the peripheral data.

Mode For Invention

The objects, features, and advantages of the present invention becomemore apparent from the following detailed description with reference tothe accompanying drawings. However, various modifications are possiblein various embodiments of the present invention and thus, specificembodiments are illustrated in drawings and related detaileddescriptions are listed.

In the accompanying drawings, the thicknesses of layers and areas areexaggerated for clarity and also, it will be understood that when anelement or a layer is referred to as being “on” another element orlayer, it may be directly on the other element or intervening elementsmay also be present. The same reference numerals denote the sameelements in principle throughout the specification.

Additionally, detailed descriptions of well-known functions orconfigurations will be omitted since they would obscure the presentinvention in unnecessary detail. Additionally, numbers (for example,first and second) used in the description of this specification are justidentification symbols for distinguishing one component from anothercomponent.

Hereinafter, an electronic device according to the present inventionwill be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.The suffixes “module” and “unit” for components used in the descriptionbelow are assigned or mixed in consideration of easiness in writing thespecification and do not have distinctive meanings or roles bythemselves.

Electronic devices described in this specification may include fixedterminals such as digital TVs and desktop computers in addition tomobile terminals such as smartphones, laptop computers, digitalbroadcast terminals, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portablemultimedia players (PMPs), and navigation systems.

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating an operating environment according to anembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a Point-Of-Sales (POS) peripherals controllingdevice 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may beconnected to a host device 200 and at least one POS peripheral 300.

The host device 200 may be an electronic device such as a desktopcomputer, a laptop computer, a tablet, and a smartphone. The host device200 may communicate with the POS peripherals controlling device 100. Thehost device 200 and the POS peripherals controlling device 100 are notlimited thereto and may communicate with each other through a wirelesscommunication method. The host device 200 may receive various userinputs for controlling the POS peripherals 300 from a user and processthem, and also may generate a command for controlling the POSperipherals 300. Moreover, the host device 200 may transmit thegenerated command to the POS peripherals controlling device 100.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 according to an embodiment ofthe present invention may communicate with the host device 200 andmoreover, may communicate with at least one POS peripheral 300. The hostdevice 200 and the POS peripherals controlling device 100 are notlimited thereto and may communicate with each other through a wirelesscommunication method. The POS peripherals controlling device 100 and theat least one POS peripheral 300 are not limited thereto and maycommunicate with each other through a wired communication method. ThePOS peripherals controlling device 100 according to an embodiment of thepresent invention may transmit various commands, which are received fromthe host device 200, to the POS peripheral 300 to which the commands areto be transmitted. Moreover, various data received from the POSperipherals 300 may be transmitted to the host device 200.

At least one POS peripheral 300 may be an electronic device such as acode scanner, a printer, a card payment signature pad, and a card readerfor reading one-dimensional code such as cash drawer and barcode and/ortwo-dimensional code such as QR code or color code. The at least one POSperipheral 300 may communicate with the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100. The POS peripherals controlling device 100 and the at leastone POS peripheral 300 are not limited thereto and may communicate witheach other through a wired communication method. At least one POSperipheral 300 may perform a necessary operation on the basis of areceived command and furthermore, may generate various data such as datafor reporting a result of an operation performance to the host device200 and data for notifying current state information to the host device200 and transmit it to the POS peripherals controlling device 100.

When an electronic device in an existing desktop form is used as a hostdevice, the host device may include a wired interface part connectibleto POS peripherals but since electronic devices having excellentportability and mobility do not include a sufficient wired interfacepart connectible to POS peripherals, it is impossible to use a tablet PCor a smartphone as a host device.

Of course, when, a wireless communication module such as WiFi-Direct orBluetooth is employed to POS peripherals, it may be used as a hostdevice for controlling POS peripherals through a wireless communicationmethod by using a tablet PC or a smartphone. However, in such a case, inorder to use a plurality of POS peripherals by using a tablet PC or asmartphone, since it requires a cumbersome procedure, for example,Bluetooth pairing is performed again for controlling another POSperipheral while controlling one POS peripheral, users feel even moreuncomfortable in comparison to a case that an electronic device in anexisting desktop form is used as a host device.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 according to an embodiment ofthe present invention may include a wireless communication unit forcommunicating with an electronic device having excellent portability andmobility such as a tablet PC or a smartphone, through a wirelesscommunication method. On the other hand, the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention maysufficiently include a wired interface part such as USB port, which iswiredly connected to the various POS peripherals 300.

Accordingly, when an electronic device having excellent portability andmobility such as a tablet PC or a smartphone is used as the host device200, the host device 200 may transmit various commands necessary for acontrol of the POS peripherals 300 to the POS peripherals 200 inconnection with only the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and thePOS peripherals controlling device 100 connected to various POSperipherals 300 may identify the POS peripherals 300 to which acorresponding command is to be transmitted and transmit a receivedcommand. Therefore, it is possible to solve the conventional issues.

That is, as the host device 200 is indirectly connected to the POSperipherals 300 through the POS peripherals controlling device 100without being directly connected to the all POS peripherals 300, thehost device 200 may control the plurality of POS peripherals 300 even ifbeing connected to only the POS peripherals controlling device 100, sothat it is possible to solve the conventional issues.

Hereinafter, a configuration of the POS peripherals controlling device100 and a control method thereof will be described in more detailaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a POS peripherals controlling deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

A POS peripherals controlling device 100 according to an embodiment ofthe present invention may include a communication unit 110, at least oneperipheral controlling module 120, an interface part 130, a memory 140,and a controller 150. Components shown in FIG. 2 are not essential andthus, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 having more or lesscomponents may be implemented.

Hereinafter, the components are described one by one.

The communication unit 110 may include at least one module for allowingcommunication between the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and awireless communication system or between the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 and a network where the host device 200 is located. Forexample, through the communication unit 110, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may communicate data with the outside by using atleast one of WiFi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, WiGig, Radio FrequencyIdentification (RFID), infrared Data Association (IrDA), Ultra Wideband(UWB), and WiHD.

Of course, the communication unit 110 may include a wired communicationmodule in addition to a wireless communication module. For example,through the communication unit 110, the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 may communicate data with the outside by using at least onecommunication method of a USB method, a serial method, and a parallelmethod.

Through the communication unit 110, the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 may receive various data from the host device 100 andtransmit necessary data to the host device 100.

The at least one peripheral controlling module 120 may perform afunction for communicating data properly in correspondence to a type ofat least one POS peripheral 300 connected to the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 through the interface part 130 described below.

For example, a first peripheral controlling module 1201 may include afunction for communicating with a printer among various POS peripheralsand a second peripheral controlling module 1202 may include a functionfor communicating with a cash drawer among various POS peripherals.

For another example, the first peripheral controlling module 1201 mayinclude a function for communicating with a printer manufactured by Acompany among various printers and the second peripheral controllingmodule 1202 may include a function for communicating with a printermanufactured by B company among various printers.

Through the at least one peripheral controlling module 120, the POSperipherals controlling device 100 may communicate with various POSperipherals 300 by using a proper method.

The interface part 130 may provide a function for allowing at least onePOS peripheral 300 to be connected to the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100.

For example, through the interface part 130, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may communicate data with at least one POSperipheral 300 by using at least one of WiFi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, WiGig,RFID, IrDA, UWB, and WiHD.

Of course, the interface part 130 may include a wired communicationmodule in addition to a wireless communication module. For example,through the interface part 130, the POS peripherals controlling device100 may communicate data with POS peripherals by using at least onecommunication method of a USB method, a serial method, and a parallelmethod.

Through the interface part 130, the POS peripherals controlling device100 may transmit various data, received from the host device 100, to atleast one POS peripheral 300 again and receive necessary data from theat least one POS peripheral 300.

The interface part 130 may include a plurality of interface units 1301,1302, . . . , 130p. At this point, all of the p interface units 1301,1302, . . . , 130p may be units for communication through an A method(for example, a USB method). Furthermore, a of the p interface units1301, 1302, . . . , 130p may be units for communication through an Amethod (for example, a USB method) and (p-a) of the p interface units1301, 1302, . . . , 130p may be units for communication through a Bmethod (for example, a serial method).

The memory 140 may store various data necessary for an operation of thePOS peripherals controlling device 100.

For example, the memory 140 may store a program for an operation of thecontroller 150 and/or at least one peripheral controlling module 120 andmay various data (for example, data received from a host device, datareceived from POS peripherals, data to be transmitted to a host device,and data to be transmitted to POS peripherals).

Moreover, the memory 140 may match identification information of the POSperipherals 300 and information on an interface unit connected to thePOS peripherals 300 and store it.

The memory unit 140 may include at least one type of storage mediumamong flash memory type, hard disk type, multimedia card micro type,card type memory (for example, SD or XD memory), random access memory(RAM), static random access memory (SRAM), read-only memory (ROM),electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM),programmable read-only memory (PROM), magnetic memory, magnetic disk,and optical disk.

The controller 150 may control overall operations of the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100.

Various embodiments described herein may be implemented in recordingmedia that can be readable by computers or devices similar theretothrough software, hardware, or a combination thereof.

Through hardware implementations, embodiments described herein may beimplemented using at least one of application specific integratedcircuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signalprocessing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers,micro-controllers, microprocessors, and electrical units for performingfunctions. In some cases, such embodiments may be implemented by thecontroller 150.

Through software implementations, embodiments relating to procedures orfunctions may be implemented together with an additional software modulefor performing at least one function or operation. Software code may beimplemented by a software application written in an appropriate programlanguage. Additionally, software code may be stored in the memory 140and executed by the controller 150 and/or at least one peripheralcontrolling module 120.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a host device connected to a POSperipherals controlling device according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

The host device 200 may include a communication unit 210, a user inputunit 220, a memory unit 230, an output unit 240, at least one controlunit 250, and a controller 260. Components shown in FIG. 3 are notnecessary, so that a host device having less or more components may beimplemented.

Hereinafter, the components are described one by one.

The communication unit 210 may include at least one module for allowingwireless communication between the host device 200 and a wirelesscommunication system or between the host device 200 and a network wherethe POS peripherals controlling device 100 is located.

For example, the communication unit 210 may include a mobilecommunication module 211, a short-range communication module 212, and alocation information module 213.

The mobile communication module 211 transmits/receives wireless signalsto/from at least one of a base station, an external terminal, and aserver on a mobile communication network. The wireless signal mayinclude various types of data according to a voice call signal, a videocall signal, or text/multimedia message transmission.

The short-range communication module 212 refers to a module forshort-range communication. As short-range communication technology,provided are WiFi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, WiGig, RFID, IrDA, UWB, and WiHD.

The location information module 213 is a module for checking orobtaining the location of the host device 200. A representative exampleof the location information module includes a Global Positioning System(GPS) module. Moreover, in order to check the position of the hostdevice 200 in the room, WiFi technique and/or RFID technique are appliedrecently.

The host device 200 may communicate with the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 through the communication unit 210.

The user input 220 may perform a function for receiving necessary dataand/or commands from a user. Based on necessary data and/or commandsreceived from a user, the user input 220 may generate input data forcontrolling an operation of the host device 200 and a user may generateinput data for controlling an operation of the POS peripherals 300.

The user input unit 130 may include a keyboard, a mouse, a keypad, adome switch, a touch pad (for example, static pressure/electrostatic), ajog wheel, and a jog switch.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 is not limited thereto andbased on input data generated through the user input unit 220, mayselect some requiring an operation control among at least one POSperipheral 300 and additionally generate a control command to betransmitted to the selected some. Of course, the generation of thecontrol command is not necessary accomplished when data and/or commandsare inputted from a user through the user input unit 220.

The memory unit 230 may store various data necessary for an operation ofthe host device 200.

For example, the memory unit 230 may store a program for an operation ofthe controller 260 and/or at least one control unit 250 described belowand also may store various data (for example, data received from POSperipherals, data to be transmitted to POS peripherals, and datareceived from a user through the user input unit 220).

furthermore, the memory unit 240 may store identification information ofthe POS peripherals 300.

The memory unit 230 may include at least one type of storage mediumamong flash memory type, hard disk type, multimedia card micro type,card type memory (for example, SD or XD memory), random access memory(RAM), static random access memory (SRAM), read-only memory (ROM),electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM),programmable read-only memory (PROM), magnetic memory, magnetic disk,and optical disk. Additionally, the memory unit 230 may be implementedin a web storage form.

The output unit 240 used for generating a visual or auditory output mayinclude an audio output unit 241 and a video output unit 242.

The audio output unit 241 may output information relating to a functionperformed by the host device 200 acoustically. The audio output unit 241may include a receiver, a speaker, and a buzzer.

The video output unit 242 visually outputs information processed in theelectronic device 200. For example, the host device 200 may display aGraphic User Interface (GUI) for a user through the video output unit242.

The video output unit 242 may include at least one of a liquid crystaldisplay, a thin film transistor-liquid crystal display, an organiclight-emitting diode, a flexible display, and a 3D display.

When the video output unit 242 and a sensor (hereinafter referred to asa touch sensor) for detecting a touch operation form a mutual layerstructure (hereinafter referred to as a touch screen), the video outputunit 242 may be used as an input device in addition to an output device.The touch sensor, for example, may have a form of a touch film, a touchsheet, and a touch pad.

At least one control unit 250 may perform a function for generating acontrol command to properly control the POS peripherals 300 incorrespondence to each of at least one POS peripheral 300.

For example, a first control unit 2501 may include a function forproperly generating a control command to be transmitted to a printeramong various POS peripherals and a second control unit 2502 may includea function for properly generating a control command to be transmittedto a cash drawer among various POS peripherals.

For example, the first control unit 2501 may include a function forproperly generating a control command to be transmitted to a printermanufactured by A company among various printers and the second controlunit 2502 may include a function for properly generating a controlcommand to be transmitted to a printer manufactured by B company amongvarious printers.

When a POS peripheral is selected for operation control, the host device200 may call a control unit corresponding to the determined POSperipheral and generate a control command in a format that thedetermined POS peripheral processes properly, through the called controlunit.

The controller 260 controls overall operations of the host device 200.

Various embodiments described herein may be implemented in recordingmedia that can be readable by computers or devices similar theretothrough software, hardware, or a combination thereof.

Through hardware implementations, embodiments described herein may beimplemented using at least one of application specific integratedcircuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signalprocessing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers,micro-controllers, microprocessors, and electrical units for performingfunctions. In some cases, such embodiments may be implemented by thecontroller 260.

Through software implementations, embodiments relating to procedures orfunctions may be implemented together with an additional software modulefor performing at least one function or operation. Software code may beimplemented by a software application written in an appropriate programlanguage. Additionally, the software code may be stored in the memoryunit 260 and executed by the controller 260 and/or the control units250.

Hereinafter, a control method of a POS peripherals controlling deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention is described.

Hereinafter, by using the host device 200 and the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, acontrol method of a POS peripherals controlling device according to anembodiment of the present invention is described. However, it should beclear that a control method of a POS peripherals controlling deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention is not necessarilyimplemented by the host device 200 and the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

Additionally, hereinafter, for convenience of description, it isdescribed exemplarily that the host device 200 is an electronic devicehaving excellent mobility and portability such as a tablet PC or asmartphone, and also it is described exemplarily that the host device200 and the POS peripherals controlling device 100 communicate with eachother through a wireless communication method. Furthermore, it isdescribed exemplarily that the POS peripherals controlling device 100and at least one POS peripheral 300 communicate with each other througha wired communication method. However, this is merely for convenience ofdescription and it is not excluded from the scope of the presentinvention that the host device 200 and the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 communicate with each other by using a wired communicationmethod and additionally, it is not excluded from the scope of thepresent invention that the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and atleast one POS peripheral 300 communicate with each other by using awireless communication method.

1. Host Device—Connection of POS Peripherals Controlling Device

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may be connected to the hostdevice 200. That is, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 maycommunicate various data with the host device 200.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may communicate with the hostdevice 200 through the communication unit 110. As mentioned above, thePOS peripherals controlling device 100 and the host device 200 maycommunicate with each other through a wired communication method and awireless communication method.

When the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and the host device 200communicate with each other through a wireless communication method, aconnection procedure necessary for a corresponding communication methodmay be performed. For example, when the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 and the host device 200 attempt to communicate with eachother through a Bluetooth method, a pairing procedure necessary for aBluetooth communication method may be performed.

If the POS peripherals controlling device 100 has identificationinformation on at least one POS peripheral 300 connected to the POSperipherals controlling device 100, when being connected to the hostdevice 200, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may transmit theinformation on at least one POS peripheral 300 to the host device 200.

Of course, if the POS peripherals controlling device 100 does notcontain identification information on POS peripherals 300, a procedurefor transmitting the identification information on POS peripherals 300may be omitted. However, in such a case, as described later, after thePOS peripherals controlling device 100 obtains identificationinformation on POS peripherals 300, the identification information maybe transmitted to the host device 200.

After the POS peripherals controlling device 100 is connected to thehost device 200, it may receive various commands and/or data from thehost device 200 and perform proper operations according to the receivedcommand and/or data. Additionally, the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 may transmit necessary data to the host device 200.

2. POS Peripherals Controlling Device—Connection of POS Peripherals

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may be connected to at leastone POS peripheral 300. That is, the POS peripherals controlling device100 may communicate various data with the POS peripherals 300.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may communicate with at leastone POS peripheral 300 through the interface part 130. As mentionedabove, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and the POSperipherals 300 may communicate with each other through a wiredcommunication method and a wireless communication method.

When the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and at least one POSperipheral 300 communicate with each other through a wirelesscommunication method, a connection procedure necessary for acorresponding communication method may be performed. For example, whenthe POS peripherals controlling device 100 and at least one POSperipheral 300 attempt to communicate with each other through aBluetooth method, a pairing procedure necessary for a Bluetoothcommunication method may be performed.

After the POS peripherals controlling device 100 is connected to the atleast one POS peripheral 300, the POS peripherals controlling device 100may transmit various commands and/or data to the at least one POSperipheral 300 and also may receive necessary data from the at least onePOS peripheral 300.

When being connected to POS peripherals 300, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may perform a procedure for obtainingidentification information of each of the POS peripherals 300.

The identification information may be device unique informationallocated to each of the POS peripherals 300. For example, when a firstPOS peripheral has a unique device number, the unique device number ofthe first POS peripheral may be the identification information.

Additionally, the identification information may be allocationinformation that the POS peripherals controlling device 100 allocates toeach of the POS peripherals 300. For example, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may arbitrarily allocate the identificationinformation ‘XXX’ to the first POS peripheral and the identificationinformation ‘YYY’ to the second POS peripheral.

At this point, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may check adevice type of a connected POS peripheral and allocate theidentification information in consideration of the device type. A methodof the POS peripherals controlling device 100 to check a device type ofa POS peripheral may vary.

For example, when the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and POSperipherals 300 are connected to each other, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may identify a device type by checking PnPinformation.

For another example, by transmitting a device-dependent command to thePOS peripherals 300 and checking a response to a corresponding command,a device type may be denitrified. That is, when a command that acorresponding POS peripheral recognizes and responds to is transmittedto one POS peripheral (for example, a printer), a response thereto isreceived, but when a command that a printer recognizes and responds tois transmitted to another POS peripheral (for example, a cash drawer), aresponse thereto is not received. By using this method, types of the POSperipherals 300 may be checked.

Moreover, a method of the POS peripherals controlling device 100 toallocate the identification information in consideration of a devicetype of a POS peripheral may vary.

First, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may allocate apredetermined identification information range in advance with respectto each of types of various POS peripherals and after checking a type ofa connected POS peripheral, may allocate an arbitrary value in anidentification information range corresponding to the checked type tothe connected POS peripheral. For example, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 allocates an A-B range in advance with respect toa first type POS peripheral (for example, a POS printer) and allocates aC-D range in advance with respect to a second type POS peripheral (forexample, a cash drawer). At this point, when it is determined that aconnected POS peripheral is a first type, an arbitrary value in the A-Brange may be allocated to the connected POS peripheral, and when it isdetermined that a connected POS peripheral is a second type, anarbitrary value in the C-D range may be allocated to the connected POSperipheral,

However, when identification information is allocated through such amethod, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may allocate a valuenot allocated to another POS peripheral among values in a rangecorresponding to each type may be allocated to the connected POSperipheral. For example, two or more POS peripherals having the sametype may be connected to the POS peripherals controlling device 100(that is, two or more POS printers may be connected). At this point, ifone among values in the A-B range is allocated to one POS peripheralconnected first, one of the remaining values except for thealready-allocated value may be selected from the A-B range and allocatedto the same type of a POS peripheral connected later.

Second, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may allocatedifferent identifiers in advance with respect to each of types ofvarious POS peripherals and after checking a type of a connected POSperipheral, may allocate an arbitrary value including an identifiercorresponding to the checked type to a connected POS peripheral. Forexample, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 allocates theidentifier ‘P’ in advance with respect to a first type POS peripheral(for example, a POS printer) and allocates the identifier ‘C’ in advancewith respect to a second type POS peripheral (for example, a cashdrawer). At this point, when it is determined that a connected POSperipheral is a first type, ‘PXXX’ (at this point, XXX are arbitrarilyselected values) may be allocated to the connected POS peripheral, andwhen it is determined that a connected POS peripheral is a second type,‘CYYY’ (at this point, YYY are arbitrarily selected values) may beallocated to the connected POS peripheral,

However, when identification information is allocated by such a method,the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may allow differentidentification information to be allocated to different POS peripherals.

Besides, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may allocateidentification information to POS peripherals by using various methods.

After obtaining identification information according to a connection ofthe POS peripherals 300, the POS peripherals controlling device 100, asmentioned above, may store the obtained identification information inthe memory 140.

Moreover, after obtaining identification information according to aconnection of the POS peripherals 300, the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100, as mentioned above, may transmit the obtained identificationinformation to the host device 200. However, if the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 is not connected to the host device 200, it maystore obtained identification information in the memory 140 and afterbeing connected to the host device 200, transmit the obtainedidentification information.

Moreover, when being connected to POS peripherals 300, the POSperipherals controlling device 100 may perform a procedure for obtaininginformation on an interface unit connected to each of the POSperipherals 300. That is, when being connected to a POS peripheral, thePOS peripherals controlling device 100 may check through which interfaceunit among at least one of the interface units 1301, 1302, . . . , 130pthe connected POS peripheral is connected and may obtain information onthe obtained interface unit (for example, types of ports, the number ofports, and so on).

After obtaining information on the interface units 1301, 1302, . . . ,130p connected to each of the POS peripherals 300, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may store the obtained information in the memory140. The obtained information may be matched to each of the POSperipherals 300 and stored.

If changes occurs in identification information on the POS peripherals300 and/or information on the interface units 1301, 1302, . . . , 130p,which is matched to the POS peripheral 300 and stored, the POSperipherals controlling device 100 may update it with a changed valueand store the updated information.

For example, when the same POS peripheral is connected to the POSperipherals controlling device 100 and its connection is released andthen is connected to the POS peripherals controlling device 100 again,identification information that the POS peripheral is assigned by thePOS peripherals controlling device 100 is different from identificationinformation assigned during first connection, in such a case, the POSperipherals controlling device 100 may perform update with respect tosuch changed information. However, when connection and connectionrelease occurs repeatedly between the same POS peripheral and the POSperipherals controlling device 100, since it is inefficient to performan assignment procedure of identification information during eachconnection, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may maintainpreviously assigned identification information without deleting it whena POS peripheral is disconnected and in such a case, when the same POSperipheral is connected, may use previously assigned identificationinformation as it is. In order for such an operation, the POSperipherals controlling device 100 may match device unique informationof a POS peripheral and the assigned identification information andstore it.

For another example, when the same POS peripheral is first connected tothe POS peripherals controlling device 100 by using the first interfaceunit 1301 and after the connection released, is again connected to thePOS peripherals controlling device 100 by using the second interfaceunit 1302, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may update suchchanged information.

3. Command Transmission from Host Device to POS Peripheral

Hereinafter, the host device 200 controls the POS peripherals 300 and aseries of procedures for a control through the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 will be described in more detail. For convenienceof description, hereinafter, it is assumed and described that the hostdevice 200, the POS peripherals controlling device 100, and at least onePOS peripheral 300 are connected to each other through a wired/wirelessmethod, and also it is assumed and described that acquisition andsharing on identification information of the POS peripherals 300 (thatis, sharing on identification information between the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 and the host device 200) and acquisition ofinformation on an interface unit connected to the POS peripherals 300are completed.

FIGS. 4 to 6 are views illustrating a series of procedures fortransmitting a command from a host device to a POS peripheral accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

(1) Command Generation of Host Device

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating operations for generating a commandby the host device 200 and transmitting the generated command to the POSperipherals controlling device 100 during a series of procedures fortransmitting a command from a host device to a POS peripheral accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, the host device 200 may perform detecting an eventin operation S100, checking a POS peripheral to be controlled based onthe event in operation S110, calling a control unit corresponding to thechecked POS peripheral in operation S120, generating control datathrough a called control unit in operation S130, generating data forcontroller transmission including the generated control data inoperation S140, and transmitting the generated data for controllertransmission to a POS peripherals controlling device in operation S150.

The operations may be controlled by the controller 260 of the hostdevice 200. Hereinafter, each operation will be described in detail.

The host device 200 may detect an event in operation S100.

The event is to control at least one of at least one POS peripheral 300connected to the POS peripherals controlling device 100.

The event, for example, may be a user input for controlling at least oneof at least one POS peripheral 300. At this point, the user input may beaccomplished through the user input unit 220.

The event, for another example, may be the reception of a request signalfor controlling at least one of at last one POS peripheral 300, which isgenerated by an application program running on the host device 200. Theapplication program may generate/transmit the request signal accordingto a user's request and may generate/transmit the request signalregardless of a user's request.

The event, for another example, may be the reception of a request signalfor controlling at least one of at least one POS peripheral 300, whichis generated by Operating System (OS) that controls overall operationsof the host device 200.

A target POS peripheral to be controlled may be specified by the event.

For example, the target POS peripheral may be specified by the userinput. For another example, the target POS peripheral may be specifiedby a request signal generated/transmitted by the application program.For another example, the target POS peripheral may be specified by arequest signal generated/transmitted by the OS.

An operation that the target POS peripheral is required to perform maybe specified by the event.

For example, an operation for controlling the target POS peripheral maybe specified by the user input. For another example, information on anoperation for controlling the target POS peripheral may be contained ina request signal generated/transmitted by the application program. Foranother example, information on an operation for controlling the targetPOS peripheral may be contained in a request signalgenerated/transmitted by the OS.

When an event occurrence is detected, the host device 200 may check aPOS peripheral to be controlled (for example, a target POS peripheral)on the basis of the detected event in operation S110.

As mentioned above, a target POS peripheral may be specified by an eventand the host device 200 may check the target POS peripheral by analyzingthe content of the detected event.

When a target POS peripheral is checked, the host device 200 may call acontrol unit corresponding to the checked POS peripheral in operationS120.

For example, when the checked target POS peripheral is a first POSperipheral (for example, a POS printer), a first control unit 2501corresponding to the first POS peripheral may be called and when thechecked target POS peripheral is a second POS peripheral (for example, acash drawer), a second control unit 2502 corresponding to the second POSperipheral may be called.

As mentioned above, the called control unit is provided with a functionfor generating a control command for properly controlling the checkedtarget POS peripheral.

Then, the host device 200 may generate control data CD for controllingan operation of the target POS peripheral through a called control unitin operation S130. In this specification, the control data may be calleda control command or a command.

The control data, as mentioned above, may be generated based on anoperation for controlling a target POS peripheral, which is specified bythe event. That is, first control data for a first operation may bedifferent from second control data for a second operation.

The control data has a format that is processed by the specified POSperipheral. That is, the control data has a format dependent on the typeof the specified POS peripheral, and control data having a format forcontrolling a first POS peripheral may be processed by a first POSperipheral but may not be processed by a second POS peripheral.

The host device 200 may generate data for controller transmissionincluding the generated control data in operation S140.

In this specification, the data for controller transmission may becalled a data packet for controller transmission or a control packet.

The data for controller transmission is generated for more accuratelyand efficiently controlling at least one POS peripheral 300 through aPOS peripherals controlling device according to an embodiment of thepresent invention. Data for controller transmission will be described inmore detail.

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating a data structure of data for controllertransmission according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, data for controller transmission CDP may include aheader part H including information representing the data for controllertransmission, an identification information part T includingidentification information of a target POS peripheral that is to receivecontrol data CD included in the data for controller transmission CDP, alength part L including information representing the length of controldata included in the data for controller transmission CDP, and a controldata part CD including the generated control data.

A function of the header part H will be described.

In general, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may receivevarious data from the host device 200. For example, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 and the host device 200 may communicate necessarydata according to a defined communication method through which they areconnected to each other for communication, and for another example, thehost device 200 may transmit data for controlling an operation of thePOS peripherals controlling device 100. That is, only some of data thatthe POS peripherals controlling device 100 receives from the host device200 may be control data for controller transmission CDP includingcontrol data CD for controlling a POS peripheral.

The header part H has a function for allowing the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 to recognize that currently transmitted data iscontrol data for controller transmission CDP including control data CDfor controlling a POS peripheral.

A value included in the header part H of the data for controllertransmission may be a fixed value defined by a protocol between the POSperipherals controlling device 100 and the host device 200. For example,the present invention is not limited thereto but in order to representdata for controller transmission, a value used in the header part H maybe fixed to ‘HD’.

In order for a more efficient function of the header part H, the headerpart H may be located in the most front part of the data for controllertransmission CDP.

The identification information part T may include identificationinformation of the target POS peripheral that is required to receive thecontrol data CD included in data for controller transmission CDP.

The host device 200 may obtain identification information of the targetPOS peripheral on the basis of the target POS peripheral checked inoperation S110 and, as mentioned above, identification information on atlast one POS peripheral 300 received from the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100.

By the identification part T, the POS peripherals controlling device 100that receives data for controller transmission CDP may identify whichone is the target POS peripheral among at least one POS peripheral 300(that is, which one is a target POS peripheral to which control data CDis to be transmitted).

The length part L may include information on the length (that is, thesize of control data CD) of control data CD following the length part L.By the length part L, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 moreaccurately recognize control data CD included in the data for controllertransmission CDP.

The length part L, for example, may represent bytes of the control dataCD. That is, when data included in the length part L is ‘2’, the size ofthe control data is two bytes.

In order for a more efficient function of the length part L, the lengthpart L may be located directly in front of the control data CD.

The control data CD is generated in operation S130.

The sizes of the header part H, the identification information part T,and the length part L may be two bytes, one byte, and one byte,respectively. The size of the control data CD may be variable.

As mentioned above, as the host device 200 generates data for controllertransmission CDP including various other information with control dataCD and transmits it to the POS peripherals controlling device 100,instead of simply generating only control data CD and transmitting it tothe POS peripherals controlling device 100, it is possible to allow thePOS peripherals controlling device 100 to be more accurately andorganically linked with a target POS peripheral and be able to operate.

Moreover, data for controller transmission CDP is not necessarilyimplemented with the data structure described with reference to FIG. 5.For example, control data CD included in the data for controllertransmission CDP may be implemented with a fixed length instead of avariable length and in such a case, the length part L may be omitted.For example, the position of each part of the data for controllertransmission CDP is not necessarily disposed according to the ordershown in FIG. 5. That is, data for controller transmission CDP may beconfigured in the order of header part H—length part L—control dataCD—identification information part T.

Then, the host device 200 may transmit the generated data for controllertransmission CDP to the POS peripherals controlling device 100.

At this point, the host device 200 may transmit the generated data forcontroller transmission CDP as it is to the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 but the data for controller transmission CDP may be processedadditionally according to a defined communication method for connectingthe host device 200 and the POS peripherals controlling device 100 andtransmitted to the POS peripherals controlling device 100. For example,when the host device 200 and the POS peripherals controlling device 100are connected by a Bluetooth method, various data according to a definedBluetooth protocol may be attached to the data for controllertransmission and such added processed data may be transmitted to the POSperipherals controlling device 100.

(2) Command Reception and Delivery of POS Peripheral

As described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, when the host device 200transmits data for controller transmission CDP to the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100, as the POS peripherals controlling device 100transmits control data CD included in data for controller transmissionCDP to a target POS peripheral properly by performing a necessarypredetermined operation. Hereinafter, an operation of the POSperipherals controlling device 100 is described in more detail.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating operations of the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 during a series of procedures for transmitting acommand from a host device to a POS peripheral according to anembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 mayperform receiving data from the host device 200 in operation S200,checking whether the received data includes control data CD in operationS210, preparing the transmission of the control data when the controldata is included in operation S220, and transmitting prepared controldata to a target POS peripheral in operation S230. Moreover, when thereceived data does not include the control data CD, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may perform an operation corresponding to thereceived data in operation S240.

Each operation may be controlled by the controller 150 of the POSperipherals controlling device 100. Hereinafter, each operation will bedescribed in detail.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may receive data from thehost device 200 in operation S200.

When receiving data from the host device 200, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may check whether the received data includescontrol data CD in operation S210.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may perform operation S210 bychecking the header part H of the received data. That is, as mentionedabove, it is checked whether control data CD is included in data forcontroller transmission CDP and whether a value representing data forcontroller transmission CDP is included in the header part H. Forexample, the present invention is not limited thereto but the POSperipherals controlling device 100 may check whether a value of theheader part H is ‘HD’.

If the received data is data for controller transmission (that is,control data is included in the received data), the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may provide a preparation for transmittingcontrol data to a target POS peripheral in operation S220. In operationS220, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may perform checking atarget POS peripheral in operation S222, extracting control data inoperation S224, and checking an interface unit connected to the targetPOS peripheral among at last one interface part 130 in operation S226.

Operation S220 may be performed based on a result obtained by analyzingthe received data for controller transmission.

For example, in order for operation S222, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may check the identification information part Tincluded in the data for controller transmission CDP.

Additionally, in order for operation S224, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may obtain control data CD included in the datafor controller transmission CDP by checking the length part L includedin the data for controller transmission CDP.

As the POS peripherals 300 are connected to the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 on the basis of identification informationobtained through operation S222, as mentioned above, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may check an interface unit connected to thechecked target POS peripheral by referring to a ‘POS peripheralidentification information—information of corresponding interface unit’matching table.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may transmit control dataprepared through operation S220 to a target POS peripheral in operationS230.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may transmit only controldata CD included in the data for controller transmission CDP to a targetPOS peripheral instead of transmitting data for controller transmissionCDP received from the host device 200 as it is to a target POSperipheral.

In order to perform operation S230, the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 may activate a peripheral control module corresponding to thechecked target POS peripheral among at least one peripheral controllingmodule 120. By the activated peripheral control module, the POSperipherals controlling device 100 and a target POS peripheral mayperform communication on the basis of a proper method.

4. Data Transmission from POS Peripheral to Host Device

Hereinafter, in order to transmit necessary data from the POSperipherals 300 to the host device 200, a series of procedures forcontrolling the POS peripherals controlling device 100 and the hostdevice 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention will bedescribed in more detail.

FIGS. 7 to 9 are views illustrating a series of procedures fortransmitting data from POS peripherals to a host device according to anembodiment of the present invention.

(1) Data Reception and Delivery of POS Peripherals Controlling Device

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating operations for receiving data fromthe POS peripheral 300 by the POS peripherals controlling device 100 andtransmitting the received data to the host device 200 during a series ofprocedures for transmitting a command from a POS peripheral to a hostdevice according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 mayperform receiving data from at least one POS peripheral 300 in operationS300, checking whether the received data includes data to be transmittedto the host device 200 in operation S310, checking a source POSperipheral in operation S320 when the received data includes data to betransmitted to the host device 200, generating data for hosttransmission including the received data in operation S330, andtransmitting the generated data for host transmission to the host device200 in operation S340. Moreover, when data received from the POSperipherals 300 does not include data to be transmitted to the hostdevice 200, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may perform anoperation corresponding thereto in operation S350.

Each operation may be controlled by the controller 150 of the POSperipherals controlling device 100. Hereinafter, each operation will bedescribed in detail.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may receive data from thehost device 200 in operation S200.

Then, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may check whether thereceived data includes data to be transmitted to the host device 200 inoperation S310. For example, the POS peripherals controlling device 100and the POS peripherals 300 may communicate necessary data according toa defined communication method through which they are connected to eachother for communication, and the POS peripherals controlling device 100may check whether the received data includes data to be transmitted tothe host device 200.

If the received data includes data to be transmitted to the host device200, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may check a source POSperipheral in operation S320.

When receiving data from the POS peripherals 300, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may check through which interface unit among theat least one interface unit (the interface part 130) data is receivedand as mentioned above, may check the source POS peripheral on the basisof information that is stored in the memory 140 by matching each of thePOS peripherals 300 and interface units 130 connected to each of the POSperipherals 300.

For example, when it is checked that ‘first POS peripheral-secondinterface unit’ and ‘second POS peripheral-first interface unit’ arematched in a match table stored in the memory 140 and the data isreceived through the first interface unit, the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 may determine that the second POS peripheral is asource peripheral.

Then, the POS peripherals controlling device 100 may generate data forhost transmission including the received data in operation S330.

The data for host transmission may be called a data packet for hosttransmission or a data packet.

The data for host transmission is generated for more accurately andefficiently controlling an operation for transmission from at least onePOS peripheral 300 to the host device 200 through a POS peripheralscontrolling device according to an embodiment of the present invention.Data for host transmission will be described in more detail.

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating a data structure of data for hosttransmission according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 8, data for host transmission DP may include a headerpart H′ including information representing the data for hosttransmission DP, an identification information part S includingidentification information of a source POS peripheral for transmittingdata D to be transmitted to the host device 200, a length part L′including information representing the length of data included in thedata for host transmission DP, and a data part D including the receiveddata.

A function of the header part H′ will be described.

The function of the header part H′ is very similar to the function ofthe header part included in the above-mentioned data for controllertransmission CDP and the header unit H′ has a function for allowing thehost device 200 to recognize that currently transmitted data is data forhost transmission DP including data D transmitted from the POSperipherals 300.

A value included in the header part H′ of the data for host transmissionmay be a fixed value defined by a protocol between the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 and the host device 200. In order for a moreefficient function of the header part H′, the header part H′ may belocated in the most front part of the data for host transmission DP.

The identification information part S may include identificationinformation of the source POS peripheral that transmits the data Dincluded in the data for host transmission DP.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100, as described in operationS320, may obtain identification information of a source POS peripheral.

By the identification part S, the host device 200 that receives data forhost transmission DP may identify which one is the source POS peripheralamong at least one POS peripheral 300 (that is, which one is a sourcePOS peripheral that transmits data D).

The length part L′ may include information on the length (that is, thesize of data D) of data D following the length part L′. By the lengthpart L′, the host device 100 may more accurately recognize data Dincluded in the data for host transmission DP.

The length part L′, for example, may represent bytes of the data D. Thatis, when data included in the length part L′ is ‘2’, it represents thatthe size of the data is two bytes and in order for a more efficientfunction of the length part L′, the length part L′ may be locateddirectly in front of the data D.

The data D is received from the POS peripherals 300 by operation S300.

The sizes of the header part H′, the identification information part S,and the length part L′ may be two bytes, one byte, and one byte,respectively. The size of the data D may be variable.

As mentioned above, as the POS peripherals controlling device 100generates data for host transmission DP including various otherinformation with the received data D and transmits it to the host device200, instead of simply transmitting data D received from the POSperipherals 300, it is possible to allow the host device 200 to moreaccurately obtain necessary information on the POS peripherals 300.

The POS peripherals controlling device 100 may transmit the generateddata for host transmission to the host device 200 in operation S340.

At this point, it is described above that the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 processes the data for host transmission DPadditionally and transmit it to the host device 200 according to adefined communication method for connecting the host device 200 and thePOS peripherals controlling device 100.

(2) Data Reception of Host Device

As described with FIGS. 7 and 8, when the POS peripherals controllingdevice 100 transmits data for host transmission DP to the host device200, the host device 100 may obtain necessary information on POSperipherals. Hereinafter, each operation of the host device 200 isdescribed in detail.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating operations of the host device 200during a series of procedures for transmitting data from POS peripheralsto a host device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9, the host device 200 may perform receiving data fromthe POS peripherals controlling device 100 in operation S400, checkingwhether the received data is data for host transmission in operationS410, checking a source POS peripheral in operation S420 when thereceived data is the data for host transmission, calling a control unitcorresponding to the checked source POS peripheral among at least onecontrol unit in operation S430, and processing the received data throughthe called control unit in operation S440. Moreover, when the datareceived from the POS peripherals controlling device 100 is not data forhost transmission, the host device 200 may perform an operationcorresponding to the received data in operation S450.

The operations may be controlled by the controller 260 of the hostdevice 200. Hereinafter, each operation will be described in detail.

The host device 200 may receive data from the POS peripheralscontrolling device 100 in operation S400.

When receiving data from the POS peripherals controlling device 100, thehost device 200 may check whether the received data is data for hosttransmission DP in operation S410.

The host device 200 may check whether the received data is data for hosttransmission DP by checking the header part H′ of the data received fromthe POS peripherals controlling device 100.

When the received data is data for host transmission DP, the host device200 may check a source POS peripheral in operation S420.

The host device 200 may check the source POS peripheral on the basis ofidentification information of a source POS peripheral included in theidentification information part S included in the received data for hosttransmission DP.

When the source POS peripheral is checked, the host device 200 may calla control unit corresponding to the checked source POS peripheral amongat least one control unit in operation S430.

For example, when the checked source POS peripheral is a first POSperipheral (for example, a POS printer), a first control unit 2501corresponding to the first POS peripheral may be called and when thechecked source POS peripheral is a second POS peripheral (for example, acash drawer), a second control unit 2502 corresponding to the second POSperipheral may be called.

The host device 200 may process received data through the called controlunit in operation S440.

Especially, data processed in operation S440 may be data D transmittedfrom the source POS peripheral to the POS peripherals controlling device100 among data included in the data for host transmission DP.

The data has a format that is processed by the source POS peripheral.That is, the data has a format dependent on the type of the source POSperipheral and data generated by a first POS peripheral may be processedby a first control unit corresponding to the first POS peripheral butdata generated by the first POS peripheral cannot be processed by asecond control unit not corresponding to the first POS peripheral.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the host device 200checks a source POS peripheral through operation S420, calls a controlunit corresponding to the source POS peripheral through operation S430,and processes data received from the source POS peripheral, so that datareceived from the source POS peripheral may be processed properly.

Through operations S400 to S440, the host device 200 receives datatransmitted from the POS peripherals 300 and accurately processes it andobtains data necessary for monitoring a state of the POS peripherals 300and more properly controlling the POS peripherals 300.

Moreover, although not shown in the drawing, in order to notify a resultprocessed through operation S440 to a user, the host device 200 mayoutput it visually or audibly through the video output unit 242 or theaudio output unit 241.

Alternatively, the host device 200 may notify a result processed throughoperation S440 to an application running on the host device 200 and/oran OS handling operations of the host device 200.

According to the present invention, as being connected to the POSperipherals controlling device, without a specific hardware designchange or a special hardware component addition for an existingsmartphone and/or a tablet PC, it is possible to operate as a hostdevice for controlling POS peripherals.

Moreover, according to the present invention, without a specifichardware design change or a software design change for existing POSperipherals and/or a special hardware component or software componentaddition for existing POS peripherals, it is possible to communicate aPOS peripherals controlling device through a method identical to amethod of communicating with an existing host device, and as a POSperipherals controlling device according to an embodiment of the presentinvention properly serves as an intermediate role between a POSperipheral and a host device, even when an existing smartphone and/or atablet PC is used as a host device, it is possible to communicate withvarious kinds of POS peripherals.

In relation to the control method according to the present invention,operations for configuring each embodiment are not essential andaccordingly, each embodiment may selectively include the above-mentionedoperations. Furthermore, each operation configuring each embodiment isnot necessarily performed according to the described order and theoperations described later may be performed first before the operationsdescribed earlier.

Additionally, a control method according to the present invention may beimplemented in a code or program form for executing the same and suchcode or program may be stored in a computer readable recording medium.

The present invention described above, since a number of substitutions,modifications, and changes are possible by a person of ordinary skill inthe art within the scope and spirit of the present invention is notlimited to the above-mentioned embodiments and accompanying drawings.Additionally, the embodiments described in this specification are notlimited to be applied and entire or part of each embodiment may beselectively combined and configured so that various modifications may bemade. Furthermore, operations configuring each embodiment may be usedseparately or in combination of operations configuring anotherembodiment.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A POS (Point-of-Sales) peripheralscontrolling device is configured such that at least one POS peripheralis controlled by a host device when the host device is not directlyconnected to the at least one POS peripheral, the POS peripheralscontrolling device comprising: a wireless communication unit; and acontroller is configured to: receive a first data from the host devicethrough the wireless communication unit, acquire a second data forcontrolling the at least one POS peripheral based on the first data whenthe first data is related to the controlling the at least one POSperipheral, and transmit the second data to the at least one POSperipheral, wherein a format of the first data is different from aformat of the second data, wherein the controller is configured todetermine whether a first POS peripheral of the at least one POSperipheral is able to process the second data, and wherein thecontroller is configured to transmit the second data to a second POSperipheral of the at least one POS peripheral when the first POSperipheral is not able to process the second data.
 2. The POSperipherals controlling device of claim 1, wherein the first data isinterpreted by the POS peripherals controlling device, and wherein thesecond data is interpreted by the at least one POS peripheral.
 3. ThePOS peripherals controlling device of claim 2, wherein the first data isnot interpreted by the at least one POS peripheral.
 4. The POSperipherals controlling device of claim 1, wherein the controller isconfigured to parse the first data for acquiring the second data.
 5. ThePOS peripherals controlling device of claim 4, wherein the controller isconfigured to convert the first data to the second data.
 6. The POSperipherals controlling device of claim 1, wherein the second data istransmitted to a POS peripheral being able to process the second dataamong the at least one POS peripheral.
 7. The POS peripheralscontrolling device of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured totransmit a command to the first POS peripheral for determining whetherthe first POS peripheral is able to process the second data.
 8. The POSperipherals controlling device of claim 1, wherein the controller isconfigured to transmit a command to the first POS peripheral of the atleast one POS peripheral, transmit a command to the second POSperipheral of the at least one POS peripheral when the controller doesnot receive a response to the command from the first POS peripheral in apredetermined time, and transmit the second data to the second POSperipheral when the controller receives a response to the commandtransmitted to the second POS peripheral from the second POS peripheral.9. The POS peripherals controlling device of claim 8, wherein thecontroller is configured to retransmit the command transmitted to thefirst POS peripheral when the controller does not receive a response tothe command transmitted to the first POS peripheral from the first POSperipheral in a predetermined time, and transmit a command to a secondPOS peripheral when the controller does not receive a response to thecommand retransmitted to the first POS peripheral from the first POSperipheral in a predetermined time.
 10. A POS (Point-of-Sales)peripherals controlling device is configured such that at least one POSperipheral is controlled by a host device when the host device is notdirectly connected to the at least one POS peripheral, wherein the atleast one POS peripheral is configured to comprise a first POSperipheral and a second POS peripheral, and wherein a type of the firstPOS peripheral is different from a type of the second POS peripheral,the POS peripherals controlling device comprising: a wirelesscommunication unit; and a controller is configured to: receive a firstdata or a second data from the host device through the wirelesscommunication unit, wherein the first data is related to the type of thefirst POS peripheral, and is not interpreted by the first POSperipheral, and wherein the second data is related to the type of thesecond POS peripheral, and is not interpreted by the second POSperipheral, and acquire a third data interpreted by the first POSperipheral based on the first data, or acquire a fourth data interpretedby the second POS peripheral based on the second data and transmit thefourth data to the second POS peripheral when the controller receivesthe second data, wherein a format of the first data is different from aformat of the second data, wherein a format of the third data isdifferent from a format of the fourth data wherein the controller isconfigured to determine whether the first POS peripheral is able toprocess the third data, wherein the controller is configured to transmitthe third data to a third POS peripheral of the at least one POSperipheral when the first POS peripheral is not able to process thethird data, wherein the first data is related to the type of the thirdPOS peripheral, and is not interpreted by the third POS peripheral, andwherein the third data is interpreted by the third POS peripheral.
 11. Amethod for controlling at least one POS (Point-of-Sales) peripheralconnected to a network, the method being implemented by a POS peripheralcontrolling device, and the method comprising: receiving a first datafor controlling at least one peripheral POS device from a host device,acquiring a second data for controlling the at least one POS peripheralbased on the first data, and transmitting the second data to the atleast one POS peripheral, wherein a format of the first data isdifferent from a format of the second data, and wherein the transmittingthe second data to the at least one POS peripheral comprises determiningwhether a first POS peripheral of the at least one POS peripheral isable to process the second data, and transmitting the second data to asecond POS peripheral of the at least one POS peripheral when the firstPOS peripheral is not able to process the second data.
 12. Anon-transitory computer-readable recording medium having recordedthereon a program for executing the method of claim 11.